ozvillafan

talented striker? Perhaps the "open-ended" refers to Josip Drmic?

I must be missing something. How, exactly, does a player asking to train away from the first squad reflect badly on the club? I hear that Bent has done nothing wrong - but neither has Lambert by building the side with the players he wants. However, I do recall that Bent has been through a number of clubs and fallen out of favour with more than one manager. The common denominator is Bent.

Perhaps they are training with the reserves? Would they still be considered part of the squad? I mean, if we had a huge injury crisis or somewhat?

Gearbox failure couldn't have happened to a nicer fella. The safety car comes in 1 lap earlier and the race is Webbers. Unlucky.

Give me a young, hungry player with something to prove over a player who wants to play for Villa only when it is convenient for him to do so. We've had our fill of players coming here for their retirement. While there is no guarantee Barry would have a poor attitude like some of those players, there is also no doubt he is nearing the end of his career. No thanks.

Wes - you're the reason I return to this thread. Top stuff.

Some people tried to use Premier League to differentiate but certain posters don't like that term and jump on you for using it. Try "E.P.L" - that offends nobody. *cough*trent*cough* edit: ... and isn't replaced as a naughty word.

Good ol' Bosnich! He's the reason I started following Villa back in 94.

"As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly." No from me.

Nice work from the Club. Props to our main sponsor for allowing it.

... assuming he keeps his form for us and has a stellar WC. A fairly safe assumption at this point. If Spurs lose Bale they would have a lot of cash to spend. Would they spend that on Benteke? Or somebody better?

This one: Especially for you, legov

Would've thought the easy way was to sit on your backside and collect wages. He'd have had plenty of company in this Villa side. He needs regular football if he wants to play in the WC. He wont get that here.

He needs regular playing time ahead of the WC..... ... but AL Nasr? Hardly one of the better leagues.

Box to box type midfielder that will orbit the centre circle.

It's almost as if he was trying to run a business and not a football club!

Always rated Clark.... ... but as a defensive midfielder, not a central defender.

No point having a rotation player on the amount Ireland is on.. I doubt he is on as much as Ireland, but I really don't know. Zatman is right. Brett is in his prime, age-wise and he will want first team football and he wont be getting it here. He'll be looking for a move even if it means less money.

I'm not convinced that anything has changed. We have been praised in the past by other clubs for the way we handle ourselves when approaching players and managers. In this, I believe Randy and Faulkner have always been very professional. The actual target, however, is sourced from the manager and his scouting network (with the notable exception being Ireland - but even that is debatable). Randy has always shown a willingness to back his manager's judgement - even if it was foolish to do so. What has made a difference in this window (so far) is the targets Lambert has identified. By focusing on hungry players that actually want to be here, there is no drawn out negotiations as there has been in the past. Similarly, identifying them early means no "last minute" decisions to get the player before the window closes. He's made Randy and Paul's job that much easier, so full credit to him.

Every company does this... Exactly. Look hard enough, and every sponsor has something to hate about it. So where do we draw the line? As a family club, an easy rule of thumb is Helen Lovejoy's "won't somebody please think of the children!". That is, if a child were engaged in the activity promoted by your sponsor - would it be grounds for prosecution? Can a child legally engage with a prostitute? Can a child legally drink alcohol? Can a child legally smoke cigarettes? Can a child legally walk into a Casino or place a bet? As such, you could do better than put a porn, alcohol, tobacco or gambling site on the front of your shirt. And that is the only point most of us are trying to get across. While I'm certain it makes good financial sense, it's personally disappointing that Villa signed DaftBet as their sponsor compared to a more "family" or "mainstream" business. Moral high ground? Nope. Do as you will. You don't have a problem with DaftBet? Good for you. As for me, I will show my displeasure by not buying the shirt.

This is my thought too. If this was Ladbrokes or William Hill, there wouldn't be the same faux-uproar Yep. Because those who refuse to buy a shirt because it has a gambling company as sponsor..... ... would change our minds if it was Ladbrokes or William Hill. You might be deliriously happy that we have a gambling company on the front. Others, such as myself, are not. Period. Uproar? Hardly. Could the club have done better? IMO, yes. Same as a gambling company, for mine. Throw in smokes and porn while you're at it. As another poster said, If you look hard enough you'll find reason to hate any sponsor. I would buy a shirt for my son with this sponsor on it.

... did you just give us an example?

That would be your opinion, then

You dont have one?